Watch enthusiasm is often marked with periods of restlessness. A desire to expand a watch collection can lead to either a sense of achievement or sometimes regret. Before taking the plunge, it is also worth considering a colorful watch strap to mix up the look of your existing collection. It could save you thousands.It has been muggy here in Sydney lately, with summer-like storms lingering and periods of relatively high humidity. Something about the fickle weather has had me in a funk. Sometimes when I get this way, I will start looking at new watches more, like window shopping to keep my restless mind occupied. Having come out of this process, my advice is to look into a much more affordabl...
Welcome to another episode of Fratello On Air. This week, we discuss flying on airplanes with our vintage watches and why we avoid it. We also cover several other watch-related topics before and after the main subject. Enjoy the show! This podcast player is blocked because you did not accept marketing cookies. Change cookie settings Flying on airplanes may be a normal and safe activity, but how does it affect our vintage watches? We discuss our thoughts on the question and why we tend to wear newer pieces. For those who don t love our banter, we begin our main subject after 40 minutes. However, all but a few minutes of the first portion are related to watches, so fast-forward at your per...
As you may have read on Fratello before, Seiko is celebrating the 100th anniversary of having this brand name on its watches dials this year. The house is introducing limited anniversary editions of new models throughout the year to commemorate this. Today, the Astron line sees a big new release, including an anniversary LE.These are the Seiko Astron SSH151, SSH153, SSH155, and the limited SSH156. So, whats new? Well, they mark the first time that Seiko has combined the Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time technology with a chronograph. This is thanks to a brand-new caliber, the 5X83. Lets have a closer look!The new Seiko Astron caliber 5X83The new caliber 5X83 features sub-dials at 6, 9, and 12 o cl...
Some 25 kilometers north of Geneva, on the shore of the city s eponymous lake, lies the town of Nyon. This is the place that Renaud Tixier, the latest Swiss independent watch brand launching today, calls its home. It s the latest collaborative effort between Dominique Renaud - the renowned watchmaker and co-founder of Renaud & Papi - and the talented up-and-comer Julien Tixier. The project s ambition is to revisit and reinvent seven different principles of horology, applying the pair s creativity and know-how in a quest for mechanical innovation. This is a major claim for a brand to make on the day of its inception. But if you understand exactly who stands behind it, expectations should ...
Am I being overly dramatic when I think of the word fratricide after seeing the two-tone Certina DS Action GMT Powermatic 80? Well, first, this is Fratello, so it is within the theme. And then theres the watch. Certinas GMT took me by surprise and made me worry about its big brother, the Longines Spirit Zulu Time in steel with a touch of gold. Both Swatch Group creations are flyer GMT watches with a similar aesthetic vibe, but the prices are very different.Not too long ago, I tried on the black and green Certina DS Action GMT Powermatic 80 that Jorg reviewed. The obvious vibes and the sheer amount of heavy metal - stating that the bracelet is solid is a huge understatement - didnt rock my b...
Picking three watches under $1,000 that I think are the best buys in 2024 is not easy. What I always find amusing are comments under articles that say, This list is not valid if it doesnt include brand X, Y, or Z. But I understand comments like these if youre a fan of one of these brands and are convinced these are the best watches money can buy. So I followed the advice in the comments, looked up some of the proposed alternatives, and ended up including one of the mentioned brands.As Thomas mentioned in his article last week, the pre-owned market offers tons of options for great watches under $1,000. For this series, though, we re sticking to watches with a retail price within this budget i...
Most major watch shows center around brands and new releases, leaving the pre-owned and vintage side of the industry to run smaller, typically localized gatherings. However, a few shows break this rule, with one, the Original Miami Beach Antique Show, taking place in the colossal Miami Beach Convention Center. Held every January, the show attracts visitors and exhibitors from across the globe, and every year, my internal feeling of FOMO increases little by little once Instagram begins to fill with behind-the-scenes snaps and watch finds.The reason? The watches at the show are some of the rarest and most coveted examples on the market. The show attracts an international audience, with industr...
Welcome to another Sunday Morning Showdown. It s time to get that extra-large coffee this morning because we have a special showdown for you! It is the battle of the Moonwatches. If you are a regular Fratello reader, you could have seen this one coming from a mile away. Today, Jorg will defend the recently introduced white-dial version of the Speedmaster Professional. In the other corner, Mike will make his case for the traditional black-dial Moonwatch in today s battle. In the end, you get to decide the winner, so let s get going!Within the world of Fratello, this is probably the most epic battle you will ever see. As the home of Speedy Tuesday, this showdown will divide people deeply. Expe...
Swiss brand Genus is known for the quirky extravagance of the GNS1. It won the GPHG award for Mechanical Exception in 2019 and spawned some delightful variations. We also know the challenges of the second album for any hot new artist, as well as for wristwear. By introducing the Genus GNS2, I feel the brand is on the right, modern track. And it is a twisted figure-eight track that will confound you.I must admit to being ever-more excited about modernity in watchmaking and moving away from my previous love of retro. I mean, with over 10 years since the debut of the Tudor Black Bay, which has now morphed into a brand within a brand, surely we are nearing a saturation point, regardless of wheth...
Even for us watch journalists, it s sometimes hard to keep up with all the new releases out there. That s why it s nice that brands sometimes invite us over to take a look at their new stuff instead of simply sending press releases. Last Monday, for example, the entry-level brands of the Swatch group invited us to stop by. Certina, Rado, Hamilton, and Balmain were all present, and, of course, Tissot was also there. And I think it was the brand s new 40mm version of its Seastar 1000 Powermatic 80 that surprised me the most that day.We actually recorded a podcast right then and there to discuss all the new releases from the aforementioned brands. Unfortunately, some are still under embargo, so...
Another Friday, another Top 5! We re continuing our series of pre-owned picks that we feel deserve your attention. It s a mix of vintage pieces and more modern watches. What they all have in common is each can be yours for a good price. In today s market, looking at pre-owned options is a smart thing. With list prices for new watches continuously increasing, the temptation to buy pre-owned becomes bigger every week. That s why we have picked five more watches that are not models you might immediately think of.As I explained, nothing beats searching the internet weekly for your favorite obscure favorites. We love doing this in the Fratello office. It s all about finding the forgotten gems, th...
Tiger bites kill, but marmot bites are just a tad annoying. Porsche Design decided to reimagine a military chronograph of the 1970s and position it in a more peaceful, civilian way. So the original U.S. Air Force tigers head made way for a screaming marmot. The medium-sized rodent is called a Mankei in Pinzgau, Austria. Mankei is also the name of Ferdi Porsches meeting place for car enthusiasts, located on the Grossglockner High Alpine Road close to Studio F. A. Porsche. Getting back to the new watch (something thats always a bit difficult when talking about Porsche Design), it is made of titanium carbide and has left behind the Military moniker for the friendlier name Utility. I took the Po...
Two years ago, Bvlgari introduced the Octo Finissimo Sketch, with its dial printing executed in pencil-sketch style. It was a stroke of brilliance from Bvlgaris Product Creation Executive Director Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani. Now, two years later, the brand is celebrating its 140th birthday. To mark the occasion, Stigliani took his pencil out of the drawer once more, this time to sketch the view from the back onto the dial of three limited editions.There is a time-only version in rose gold and one in stainless steel. There is also a third model, a chronograph GMT. Unfortunately, at the time of writing, there is no photography of this one available yet. Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Sketch - ...
I think we can all agree here that the Zenith Chronomaster Original is already one of the best-looking chronographs out there. Adding the calendar and moonphase complications on top could ve ended in absolute disaster. However, it certainly didn t - quite the opposite, actually. When the Chronomaster Original Triple Calendar launched a little over a month ago, it was hard to find people who didn t think this was another great-looking watch. But a watch is more than just a pretty face. That s why we go hands-on with it and find out what it s really like to wear.In his introduction article, Jorg already went over the origins of the new Zenith Chronomaster Original Triple Calendar. He told you ...
It is no secret that I enjoy the Tudor Black Bay Pro. It is at the top of my list of watches to buy, and hopefully, that won t take too long anymore. But as long as it s not part of my collection, I ll jump on any occasion to wear the watch and get confirmation that it is still as great as I remembered it. That s why I jumped on the chance to wear the Black Bay Pro with three new Forstner bracelets. For a while, the American brand has had aftermarket bracelets for the Tudor Black Bay series in its collection. But with new end links to fit the Tudor Black Bay Pro, you can now change the look of this popular GMT. I had a chance to switch between the options and find my favorite to fit my favor...
I am very excited to announce that the RZE Fratello Resolute Pro Contour is available to pre-order now in the Fratello Shop. This launch is something new for Fratello regarding price point, and it all came to life off the back of community feedback. We ve been truly humbled by the support from the Fratelli over the past couple of years on every project we ve released. We appreciate that not all of these projects have been equally accessible to everyone, and we wanted to do something to change that.I have been a fan of RZE for quite some time. Honestly, I cannot recall the first of RZE s watches I saw in hand and tried on, but I know that I ve been equally impressed with each successive rel...
Excelsior Park holds quite a special place in watchmaking history. It was a fine-quality watch manufacturer, but the company s name remains unknown to many today. The reason is simple: EP mostly delivered cases and movements to other familiar watch brands, including Zenith, Girard-Perregaux, and Gallet.Applying the rule of thumb when randomly browsing vintage watch dealers or auction sites, you bump into 50 other-branded EP watches before you run across a fully branded Excelsior Park watch. And we are not even talking about the watch s condition yet, which would increase the ratio. For the record, this estimate is purely subjective and based on my browsing habits and preferences. But still, ...
Have you ever seen a Crash live? If you have, you will agree with me that this very peculiar Cartier creation is something special. Do you know whats even more special than any old Cartier Crash? A skeletonized Cartier Crash Skeleton Extra Large limited edition in platinum, that s what. Only 10 were made in 2017 in honor of a special exhibition on Cartier watchmaking. World-famous architect Norman Foster curated 170 exhibits for the Cartier in Motion showcase at the Design Museum London. The creation of a special, skeletonized Crash in platinum seemed both celebratory and appropriate in many ways. The skeletonized look does have some architectural qualities, for instance, and the city of Lon...
The sub-$1,000 segment used to be teeming with amazing watches from microbrands and long-established mainstream brands alike. Today, a lot of them have crossed the $1K mark. It can almost make you feel as if $1,000 isn t a boatload of money, which it is, especially if it s all in pennies. Jokes aside, although there may be fewer obvious contenders than before, I think we should still set the bar quite high. These are my three subjective picks for the best watches under $1,000 that are available today.Of course, you expand your options by venturing into the secondhand market. For this series, however, we chose not to. Each writer will share what he feels are the best watches available to buy ...
The Seamaster Ploprof is partially famous for being on the wrist of FIAT boss Gianni Agnelli. Many think Agnelli wore his Ploprof over his cuff because he thought it was stylish, but it was actually because of his allergic reactions to metal on his skin.Gianni Agnelli wearing his Omega Ploprof in St. Moritz back in 1979Despite him doing this out of necessity, many have praised and copied Agnellis wearing style and still do, even today. I have never dared to do it (it just looks a bit weird), and I dont suffer from any metal allergies either, so its not necessary.Omega Seamaster 600 PloprofThe Seamaster PloprofThe Omega Seamaster 600 Ploprof (short for Plongeur Professionnel, meaning Professi...
